
- BGG rank
- BGG #3,337
- BGG rating
- 7.6
Unhappy King Charles!
- 2 players
- 240 min
- Complexity 3.3/5
- 2008

2008
Rules assistance for Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 2 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 is a board game released in 2008 for 2 players and 180 minutes per game. It was designed by Charles Vasey and its main mechanics are Area Movement and Area-Impulse.
“Not everyone can command an army of 140,000. It is difficult to manage when one is not used to it” Maréchal Canrobert during the trial of Maréchal Bazaine Death Ride covers the battle of 16 August 1870 between French units of the Imperial Armée du Rhin seeking to retreat west from Metz, and German Confederation forces seeking to deny the French escape by turning their southern flank. Neither side was fully aware of the other’s position. Faced with the unknown both armies conformed to type with the French defending strongly and the Germans attacking. For once, though, the French far outnumbered the Germans. As a result a heavily outnumbered German army was forced to make a series of attacks to prevent the French discovering its weakness and to deny the French their retreat to the west. Had the French pushed the Germans aside they would have been able to combine their armies and possibly protect Paris. They might also have avoided the collapse of the Bonapartist cause. This version appeared in Against The Odds magazine #24 Full color 22"x34" map 140 full color die-cut 1/2" and 88 5/8" counters Rulebook length - 16 pages Complexity - Low Solitaire Suitability - Medium Playing Time - 4 hours Design - Charles Vasey Development - Paul Rohrbaugh Graphic Design - Craig Grando
Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 supports 2 players according to the catalogue. This is the publisher’s listed player count, so the game is designed for exactly that number of participants. Variants for other group sizes, if any, are described in the rulebook of your edition, so check it before setting up a different configuration.
The listed playing time for Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 is 180 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 has a complexity rating of 2.5 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 belongs to these categories: Wargame and Post-Napoleonic. Its main mechanics are Area Movement and Area-Impulse. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 are: Charles Vasey. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Deathride: Mars-la-Tour 1870 as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.